Beatles Lyrics

Hunter Davies is the author of over thirty books which include such modern classics as the authorised biography of The Beatles, The Glory Game and A Walk Around the Lakes. He has written several other walking books and also a travel biography of Christopher Columbus which took him to the West Indies and the Americas. He is also well known as a broadcaster and journalist and writes for the Independent, Sunday Times, Daily Mail and New Statesman. He was married to the novelist and biographer Margaret Forster from 1961 until her death in 2016.

[Davies] has managed to track down handwritten versions for 100 of the band's 182 lyrics, and it's undeniably fascinating to observe these scribbled seeds, particularly when they contain alterations, crossings-out and abandoned verses... The other main attraction of the book is Davies' unrivalled access to the group. As the only authorised Beatles biographer during the band's existence, he spent time observing Lennon and McCartney as they wrote songs, and his vivid account of the pair holding court amongst friends in the latter's music room... is just one of several fascinating behind-the-scenes moments